50 AFRICAN ADVENTURE STORIES 



torn by one, came to camp to have our doctor 

 treat him. He and two other Masai had at- 

 tacked the lion with spears. All three were 

 badly hurt; our visitor's two companions died 

 from their wounds. * The Masai's arms and legs 

 were severely bitten and there was a deep gash 

 on his back. 



I was skinning specimens in front of my tent 

 one afternoon when a long-legged Masai herd- 

 boy, whom I recognised as a frequent visitor, ap- 

 peared, and stood watching me for some time. 

 Then in a low tone of voice he tried to converse. 

 I made a joking remark about my inability to 

 understand him, which, of course, he in his turn 

 failed to understand. Still, he went on talking, 

 and was so persistent that I soon became 

 convinced that he must have something impor- 

 tant to communicate. I called my tent boy, 

 Tommy, and told him to hunt up some of our 

 porters who understood the Masai language and 

 find out what the visitor had to say. 



Tommy soon brought an interpreter, and I 

 learned that the herdboy had left his companion 

 watching a drove of sheep and goats and had 

 come to tell me that he had seen a pair of lions 

 feeding upon the body of a wildebeest. After 



